章 10: 0.12.
Anna dropped by the following morning to look over the situation. She had been busy since the night before and headed to the royal palace before returning. She passed an artifact which she was granted permission to take from the royal vault to Evelyn. The artifact was a pendant, except this one allowed the wearer to alter their appearance.
Anna had to leave to settle other issues so she would be absent for a while. Evelyn was to remain by Sequencee's side for the time being. Summarized, Sequencee would become Evelyn's temporary escort.
"This is delicious," Evelyn's expression slackened at the taste of the cake.
"Right? My mom said this is one of the best cake house in the capital. Too bad they don't have it where I live," Sequencee sliced the cake with the metal fork and brought it up to his mouth.
"Where do you live again?"
"Estia."
"That is ... quite far from here isn't it?"
"Yeah. To the southwest of the capital."
"Hm ..." Evelyn nibbled on her fork as she glanced down at the entrance of the cake house from the first floor.
The pâtisserie wasn't super crowded as the items here were tailored for rich nobles. The place was cozy and luxurious, with few excellent cake selections to choose from at the counter. If not for His Majesty's generous promise to pay for everything, Sequencee wouldn't have come here.
The door opened, hitting the gold bell with a crisp chime. A new customer had entered, Evelyn watched as the merry couple took to the glass display of cakes to make their selection.
"Where do you want to go after this? I've basically told you everything I know about the capital, though it's my first time here."
"We'll just hang out here then. There's nothing to do either way but wait … "
There were a lot of proverbial fireworks going off in the circle of upper nobility and royalty. The Marquis and his son had been found dead while her daughter was still missing. As for the Euincing Trading Company, it had been shut down in suspicion of cooperating with the underworld.
Boltt Euincing was also missing, which could be suspected as a successful escapism. It's likely that Flona was taken away with him, so there was still a large-scale search ongoing. The hopes weren't that great for the last member of the Loid Marquis household. Guiltily, the head maid which Sequencee spared that day was in fact, Flona's mother. How complex was the situation of their household anyways? Just the thought of it was headache inducing.
As for the possibility of this being some powermove to shift the tide of the succession war, it was slim but not impossible. There was certainly no way anyone could've drugged Her Highness without someone opening a gap in the security of the castle.
As for Her Highness Evelyn's maid, Selina, Evelyn had raised a pardon which would be delivered through Anna.
"Sequencee, are you still going to Rika Nation after this?" Evelyn asked, swirling her tea.
"That, I'm not sure. It depends on my mom."
"Then, if you're going, can I join too?"
"Aren't you royalty though? We're going to get our necks cut off if you accidentally die in some adventure."
"..."
"I'm being serious. The kind of places we go aren't for beginner explorers."
"Then why are you able to go then? How old are you?"
"13. I've been training since I was six, so I have the knack for it."
"I've been training since I was young too. So much so that it's become boring. Can't I go and explore instead?"
"It's dangerous, Emily."
"It's dangerous in the castle too. It's much safer being by your side."
"You're just making excuses. Well, you have to get through my mom, not me. She's the party leader, I have no say in this."
"Hmph. Then I'll just tell her that I want you to become mine."
Sequencee dropped his cake.
"You know, that's not possible … " Sequencee drawled.
"W-Why not?" Evelyn exclaimed, blushing furiously.
"Uh, have you seen demons?"
"Demons?"
"Yeah. Demons. Demonic beasts, majin, or monsters of that sort."
"No."
"Then you wouldn't understand even if I told you … "
"Because you're a demon."
"No, It's something … "
"You're lying."
"What? No, I … "
"I saw it. Your horns."
"What? Do I have horns?" Sequencee tilted his head, feigning ignorance.
'I shouldn't have brought up this topic …'
"I felt it."
"???"
'Felt it …?'
"What do you even mean by that?"
"Sit still," Evelyn got up from her seat.
"H-Hey."
Sequencee back up against his chair, Evelyn bold reached out to hold his face in place. She slid her hands just over his ears. Sequencee froze, her delicate fingers went round the base of his horn.
"And you're still trying to lie to me?" She squinted her delicate eyes.
"How did you ..."
She leaned to his ears.
"How could I not?" her voice tickled.
"... Your Highness. I hope this isn't a declaration of war. I don't mean any harm to the human race."
"Did you think I would?" She frowned, "Even if the whole world turns against you, I'll be the one who stands by your side–"
Evelyn pulled back a little with their noses no more than a few centimeters apart. Her bright purple eyes slanted in appeal.
"–So can you promise that you'll stay by my side too?"
" … Your Highness, have you heard of the suspension bridge effect?" Sequencee asked awkwardly.
"Suspension bridge effect?"
"It is the illusion of fondness towards someone because they were saved from a near death experience, not actually because of love or anything like that … "
"W-Where did you hear that from?" Evelyn pouted, hiding her trembling voice.
"I heard it from my mom, she said it was coined by Hero Rika. So ... I'm sure you'll recover in time."
"How dare you … " Evelyn groaned in vexation.
"I'm not saying anything inappropriate aren't I? That's how I see it."
"Can't you be more sensitive around topics like this!"
"I should be asking you the same. As the princess, you shouldn't just touch people without prior warning."
"Hah? You're saying you weren't warned?"
"This is getting nowhere … "
Sequence held his head and looked around. Lucky for them, the first floor was quiet. And even if it wasn't, their conversation would look nothing like a pair of engaged nobles squabbling with one another. Though, their clothes were worn by commoners so it may be fair to say they look more like a pair of lovebirds.
"Emily, let's stop this. We're making ourselves suspicious," he said.
"Fine," Evelyn stomped back to her seat and gulped her tea down.
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